Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Joanne left a very nice comment in my first posting, and asked that I tell her about the backs of the shelves in my family room. Oh Gosh, Joanne, I'm just not sure "ya'll" (yep, I'm from the south) can follow these very labor-intensive, difficult instructions, but I'll give it a try.

First, I'm going to do a little explaining (I'm one of those people who can't just get right to the point...I'm sure nobody has noticed that). So, here's a little background information (get it? background information about me/background information about the bookshelves--sorry, I know I tend to be lame). I frequently change my mind (hey! it's a girl's prerogative--changing our minds and needing diamonds, right?) I am constantly moving furniture and rearranging vignettes on my table tops (I'm not sure mine can be referred to as "vignettes", but it's the only word that seems to work in that sentence). (If you just hunt for a place to set something down, and then leave it wherever it lands, is it still a vignette?) For the first year we were married, my husband never sat down without looking behind him, because he was afraid I had moved the furniture around and the chair wouldn't be where it used to be. Then, he got the BIG MAN'S DECOR-- THE (da,da,da,daaa) RECLINER (do all men think recliners are a decor necessity?) I was instructed that, no matter what I move, I should consider his recliner cemented to the floor. It had to stay where it was placed!! The nerve of that man! Does he think it's his house too? (Actually, he has become much more accustomed to, and therefore more accepting of, all of my furniture moving -- but I still don't move THE RECLINER!) Okay, I know I digressed, sorry.

Another problem I have is that I want instant gratification! I guess I'm going to reveal all of my psychological problems while I'm blogging (well, maybe not all...). I'm telling ya, a psychiatrist would love to get me in his/her office!

I'm not very good at plodding through a project that will take weeks to complete! My dh will take months working on a tiny project, but not me! I'm much too impatient! Once I make up my mind I want to do something, I want it completed that day-if not sooner!

I considered painting the backs of my shelves, or getting out the glue gun and gluing paper or fabric to the backs of the shelves. But these options felt too permanent (remember, frequent mind-changing), and too labor-intensive (remember, instant gratification). We were having company for dinner the night I decided to do this, which is always an incentive to do some decorating instead of a thorough cleaning, which is what I should be doing. I had approximately two hours before I had to start cooking dinner. Not much of a window of opportunity.

I had some fabric (on sale from Hobby Lobby) left over from drapery panels I had made (with iron on tape--everything in my house is barely holding together-including me!).

So, I HAD to use that left over fabric somewhere, and the shelves were about the only place in the room that didn't already have fabric!

Whew! Now, if I haven't lost you with the review of my psychological problems, we are up to the point where I give you the tutorial. Ready?

I bought the least expensive tension rods they make. (These rods are not going to have much weight on them, so the less expensive ones work great):

Now, you are not going to believe this, and I cannot believe I'm broadcasting this to the cyber world, but, after cutting the fabric, I just ironed a hem into the sides and bottoms (didn't sew or glue them or anything) so that the raw edge of the material would stay hidden. Then, I draped the fabric over the tension rod. I didn't even make a pocket for the rod to go through!

I extended the rod between the shelves. Because my shelves are adjustable, I could put a rod at the top, and drop the fabric to the bottom, then slide my shelves back in. Oh Gosh! I just know that you are going to have so many questions about this complicated project.

If I tire of this fabric (wouldn't that be shocking?), I'll just drape another piece of fabric over the curtain rod. During the Christmas holidays, these shelves are filled with Santas, and in the past, I have changed the fabric for the holiday. I don't know if I'll do that this year, because the last time I did it, at the end of December I had a lot of trouble figuring out which piece of fabric fit behind which shelf section! I'm not very big on planning ahead (that would require too much time), so I didn't number the fabric when I took it down, which would have made it much easier to put it back up!

In my kitchen, I used a different technique (I'm not sure either of these can really be considered a technique!) This is another quick, inexpensive (I like that word so much better than cheap, don't you?) way to dress up a shelf.

I used a heavy wrapping paper (yes, the kind you use for gift-wrapping). I cut the paper to the size of each shelf, put a dab of that sticky "poster stick up" stuff on each corner and in the middle, and pressed it into place. Oh my, so difficult! Of course, I do see now (looking at this picture) that some of it is not staying up there very well, so maybe we'll want to rethink this project--even though it has been there for several years.

With both of these techniques, I do have the advantage of having my shelves crammed full of stuff (I know, not everyone considers that an advantage). If my wrapping paper even thinks (yes, I know wrapping paper doesn't think) about coming off the back of the shelf, there is a plate or something else that holds it in place. If my fabric in the shelves in the family room isn't quite straight, there's something on the shelf in front of it to conceal that.

Okay, how do you think I did with my first tutorial? "Ya'll come back now, ya hear? Laurie (bargainhunr)